The present invention relates to rotisserie ovens and, more particularly, to improvements in such ovens for increasing control of food quality and efficiency while using combinations of radiant and convection heat for cooking food therein.
Rotisserie ovens for grilling or otherwise cooking a variety of foods, such as meat or chicken, are well known in the art. Such ovens typically include an inner cooking chamber with a rotating spit or spits disposed therein for carrying the food. Also, typically provided are heating elements and one or more fans for circulating hot air within the oven to facilitate convection cooking. Radiant heating elements may also be provided for searing or holding the temperature of the food in the oven.
Two representative prior art commercial-type rotisserie ovens are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,348 to Halters et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,515 to Burkett et al. Although these represent improvements in prior rotisserie ovens, the present generation of rotisserie ovens still experience problems such as poor fan motor life due to clogging with grease, difficulty in cleaning the oven interior and difficulty in controlling or holding the temperature of the food product being cooked after the cooking is complete.
Burkett et al. attempt to address the problem of holding the cooked food product after cooking without lowering the quality, particularly by drying. For this purpose, Burkett et al. disclose a control system which pulses a circulation fan on and off, depending on the internal oven temperature.
However, neither Burkett et al., Halters et al. nor the present generation of commercially available rotisseries address a problem frequently presented in commercial applications wherein it may be desirable to heat the food product by radiant heat alone, for holding or other cooking purposes, without circulating hot air within the oven. This problem is particularly encountered in the Halters et al. oven and is typical of the prior art. For example, once the food product being cooked has reached the desired degree of doneness, it is desirable to reduce or even stop the circulation of hot air within the oven in order to reduce or stop the cooking of the food product. However, when the inside fan is stopped to prevent further cooking of the food product, the outside or cooling circulation fan also stops, thus stopping air flow which cools both the fan motor and the shell of the oven. For this reason, safety regulations require at least 6 inches of space surrounding ovens made according to the Halters et al. design. If the fan is operated to continue the cooling, the extra circulation of hot air within the oven tends to overcook or dry out the food product. While Burkett et al. attempt to solve the problem of food product dryness, its solution does not provide benefits in all applications.
Another problem with the prior art ovens has been difficulty in cleaning. Although the Halters et al. oven is intended to reduce the splatter of grease within the oven, a degree of splattering still occurs and the oven must be cleaned regularly. The configuration of the inside top of the Halters et al. oven is typical of convection ovens in that it provides a plurality of heating elements and air flow spaces for heating the convection currents. It is also typical in that it presents a fairly complex surface which is difficult to clean. There is, therefore, a need in the art for convection-type rotisserie oven which provides necessary air flow spaces and heating elements, while also providing an easy to clean and maintain surface.